Every day, all over the world, an increasing number of people, from all walks of life, are reporting near-death experiences (and related phenomena). NHNE has created several websites and social networks to explore these experiences. This website serves as home base for our public presentations, classes, and meetings.

If NDE researchers like Kenneth Ring are correct, finding out more about these experiences can dramatically change our lives — and, by extension, our culture and planet. As Ring notes in his classic book, Lessons from the Light: “Merely learning about the near-death experience has effects similar to those reported by NDErs.”

How can we live more consciously? Be more aware of and guided by Spirit? Be more cognizant of the impact our thoughts and actions have on ourselves and others? Realize all life is connected, interrelated, interdependent, one? Discover our unique role in life, and begin to fulfill it? Live every moment of our Earthly lives infused with the same love, light, wisdom, oneness and healing power that transforms those who encounter it on the other side?

We are delighted to welcome Deirdre Maltby as a friend and helper of Bereavement Rescue. Deirdre is a Near Death Expeience survivor who has come back with a mission to share her experience and what she has learned, which is of particular help and comfort to people in bereavement. Deirdre has offered to be available for people to contact. We recommend that anyone in bereavement makes contact with her and benefits from her direct experience of the continuity of life beyond physical death - or just read her book about her experience.

Deirdre (Dea) Dewitt Maltby may be a fledgling author, but what an inspiring first story she has to write about and share with the world! It is a story about crossing over to a space between our world and the next. In November of 2008 as a result of an unforeseen accident that is exactly what happened.

This is a remarkable and touching story she shares about four separate experiences that have altered her heart and soul forever, and in a way that introduced her to the person she had been living with her whole life - herself. She confides that "Awakening within 'another realm' and outside of my physical body, I was propelled into a spiritual odyssey of new insights on life, the essence we call God, and who I am as a person. I have not so much changed, but become more of who I was meant to be, that I feel we are all meant to be. I knew from the moment I came back into this world that I was meant to share all of this with others, even though I didn't know what that meant exactly or how it might be done" Called Dea by most, having taken what she learned from her near death adventure quite seriously she has been excited to share with others.

This is a brilliant and very comprehensive by Professor Peter Fenwick, one of the leading researchers in the NDE field. We are always looking for it to reference it, so thought we should effectively bookmark it here so we can find it easily and others can read it too:

For a long time, the common view has been that we don't know what lies beyond death because no-one had ever come back to tell us. But these days, there is so much information, so many witness accounts, it is a different matter.

Due to modern resuscitation techniques, there are massive numbers of people who get resuscitated having died,ususally in hospital. In the past, cardiac arrest was normally a condition that people didn't come back from. Now,somewhere between 2% and 20% of cardiac arrest patients survive [Ref. 1]. Of these, somewhere between 10% and 20% report a Near Death Experience. [Ref. 1,2,3,4,5]

Of those that do not report a Near Death Experience, it is thought there is a group that simply do not remember what they experienced. The cardiologist, Dr Morris Rawlings, found that some patients reported a Near Death Experience immediately after being brought back to life, but had forgotten a short while afterwards. [Ref. 6]You should read the scientific papers and writings of doctors and scientific researchers in order to be confident ofwhat we are telling you here. It is not our desire to provide false or misleading information. It is our objective to share the information and point you in the direction of solid information and research. You should do your own research and be confident of your conclusions.

The Witnesses

Near Death Experience survivors are witnesses. They have experienced something and relate that experience.When people are witnesses to a crime, their accounts are valued and relied upon in a court of law. People accused of crimes have been convicted, freed, even executed, due to witness accounts. So it should not be difficult for a reasonable person to take into serious account the witness statement of people who have had a Near Death Experience. If you would convict someone because of a witness account, you should treat the witness account of a Near Death Experience survivor with equal confidence and validity.

The case for the validity of Near Death Experiences does not hang solely on witness statements. In addition, there are expert medical witnesses who testify to the fact that death has taken place. There is medical equipment that clearly measures and demonstrates brain death. Some Near Death Experience survivors can even produce their own death certificate - a fact that is giving life insurance companies pause for thought.

The witnesses come from many and varied walks of life, background, religion (atheists and believers), culture, age,countries. There is no single unifying factor amongst them. This broad spectrum of people are no more or less reliable as witnesses than any jury or court of law witness would be.

What unites Near Death Experience survivors is the similarity of their accounts. From all corners of the world, allfaiths and lack of faiths, all ages, all races, all genders - come a massive set of witness accounts with remarkablesimilarities and overwhelming consistency.

We would like to move on to telling you about what happens in a Near Death Experience, but there is a risk that you will still have questions in your mind about validity and will therefore read no further. So we must address these issues now.

You may prefer to skip these few pages and come back later when you have read the wonderful information about what lies after death. We have been asked pretty much every question that can be asked. If we don't address your question here, please contact us so we can.

Q. Is the NDE due to anaesthetic?

A. No. A person cannot dream whilst under anaesthetic.[Ref. 7,8]

Q. Is the NDE due to prescribed drugs?

A. Many people have NDEs whilst not on any drugs e.g.road accidents, heart attacks

Q. Is it a dream?

A. 1) If a person is flatlining, there is no brain activity anddreaming is not possible. [Ref. 9,10]2) Many NDEs take place on operating theatre tables andin hospital beds where a patient is connected tomonitoring equipment that clearly measure the zero brainactivity. [Ref. 9,10]3) If it is a dream, it is a remarkably similar dream which isdreamed world-wide in these conditions. This is incrediblyunlikely. [Ref. 11,12]4) On waking up, the patient describes their NDE as beingmore real than the reality they wake up in. They describeour every day earthly reality as being more like a baddream than where they have been.[Ref. 13,14]

5) Dreams don't often dramatically change people's lives.NDE survivors have changed from criminals to pastors,from millionaires to ministers, professors to priests - directlyafter and as a result of their experience of the afterlife.[Ref. 13]Often, the wives and husbands of NDE survivors can hardlyor can no longer recognise their spouse due to thecomplete positive transformation of their personality.

Lucid Dream vs OBE: [Ref. 15]

Lucid Dream

Out of Body Experience

A. 50%-70% incidence in general population.

A. 14%-25% incidence in general population.

B. Occurs only during sleep.

B. Occurs usually when awake.

C. Dreamer can consciously program the dream.

C. OBEer is a passive, objective observer.

D. Dreamer and physical body are still integrated.

D. OBEer perceives him/herself as separated from the physical body, which is inert and thoughtless.

E. Consciousness often vivid, with mystical qualities in experienced subjects.

E. Consciousness more ordinary,like being awake, even inexperienced subjects.

F. Dream is seen as a totally personal (subjective)production of the dreamer's mind.

F. OBEer does not see it as a subjective personal production, but rather as objective reality.

G. EEG; REM dream type with occasional alpha.

G. No typical REM findings on EEG.

H. Physical body not visible.

H. Physical body usually visible.

I. Fewer have a lasting positive impact.

I. Usually a highly positive lasting impact.

Q. What about the dying brain theory?

The brains of Alzheimers patients slowly die as their brain cells die. Alzheimers patients do not come back to vibrant life. The cell death cannot be reversed. [Ref. 16]

In contrast, NDE survivors often come back full of life, with healthy active brains that show no sign of brain damage. Their brains were inactive whilst they were dead, but the cells did not die. Some NDE survivors do indeed suffer brain damage consistent with the duration of their brain death. However, there are many cases where the survivor has been dead hours or days yet returns with little or no brain damage. The fact that there are NDE survivors without brain damage demonstrates that NDEs cannot be explained as a consequence of brain damage. [Ref. 17]

"The fundamental challenge of Neuroscience today is to understand how consciousness can persist at the point ofdeath, even in dying disfunctional brains" (Bruce Greyson, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, University of Virginia)

Q. Is the tunnel of light due to light coming into dying eyes?

A. Dr Kenneth Ring did a 5 year study on people born blind who had never seen from birth - and yet had Near Death Experiences. They reported seeing for the first time during their Near Death Experience. [Ref. 18]

This tells us that the Near Death Experience cannot be explained by light effects in dying eyes. It also tells us that the dream hypothesis is invalid due to the fact that blind people tell us they only dream in senses other than sight i.e. hearing, smell, touch and taste.

Q. Could it be wish fulfillment?

A. A very well known NDE case was of Professor Howard Storm who was a self-proclaimed confirmed atheist. Prior to his NDE he believed that "when you are dead, you are dead". He had a profound life-changing NDE and, upon his return, became a priest. Like many NDE survivors, he did not find what he expected when he died.You can read Howard Storm's story in his book "My Descent into Death".

Hopefully we have now addressed any preconceived ideas or doubts about Near Death Experiences. Many people who would ask the questions we covered, do so because they have not in fact studied the subject or are repeating a weak theory they have picked up in conversation. This happens with many subjects, but this subject is not one that anyone can afford to be ignorant of. The obvious reason for this is that bereavement is much more of a problem to people without knowledge of NDE phenomenon.

Whilst we are sharing NDE evidence in order to heal bereavement and that is the focus of this book, there isconsiderably more to be learned from NDE accounts. It is a fascinating subject that yields answers to questions like:Q. Why am I here?Q. What's life about?Q. Why do bad things happen to good people?Q. Why do people have to die?Q. Why is there no justice in life?Q. Why did God make X happen?Q. Is the brain a producer or a receiver of consciousness?Q. Where do we go when we die?Q. Where were we before we lived?Q. Will I see my loved ones again?

NDEs answer the biggest questions in life. Imagine you met Jesus. What would you ask him? Would you like to know what others asked and the answers he gave? Whether Christian or non-Christian, atheist or believer,NDEs hold some very important and interesting information.

What happens in an NDE?

Near Death Experiences have certain common elements and occur on a scale. Some people just report out of body experiences in which their consciousness leaves the body and looks down on the room from the ceiling maybe. Others report travelling through tunnels, flying out through stars, feeling at one with the Universe, going into heaven, meeting Jesus and angels, having a life review and having profound conversations with Jesus.

Professor Bruce Greyson, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the University of Virginia, compiled a scale to measure the extent of Near Death Experiences. This has become known as The Greyson Scale. [Ref. 19]

The pediatrician, Dr Melvin Morse, also described nine points that are common to Near Death Experiences:[Ref. 20]1) a sense of being dead2) a feeling of peace and painlessness3) an out-of-body experience4) a tunnel experience5) encountering "People of Light"6) encountering a "Being of Light", a "force" or similar7) being given a "life review"8) a reluctance to return to life9) After effects such as personality transformation, loss of fear of death, greater spirituality, greater ecologicalsensitivity.

In the pages that follow, we will provide some quotes from Near Death Experience survivors that illustratethese points.

1) a sense of being dead

"Sort of relaxing and closing my eyes, I waited for the end. This was it, I felt. This was the big nothing, the big blackout, The one you never wake up from, the end of existence. I had absolute certainty that there was nothing beyond this life – because that was how really smart people understood it.

...For a time there was a sense of being unconscious or asleep. I'm not sure how long it lasted, but I felt reallystrange, and I opened my eyes. To my surprise I was standing up next to the bed, and I was looking at my bodylaying in the bed."- Professor Howard Storm, ex-atheist, NDE survivor, now a minister [Ref.13]

Ritchie was shocked to see that a young man was lying in the bed that he had just vacated. "The thing wasimpossible," he recalled. "I myself had just gotten out of that bed. For a moment I wrestled with the mystery of it. It was too strange to think about- and anyway, I didn't have time."- Dr George Ritchie [Ref. 21]

"I was shocked to find that I still existed, but I didn't know where I was. The one thought that kept rolling through my mind was 'How can I be when I am not?'. That really troubled me. I was trying to analyse what was going on, but it didn't make sense. Then I remembered Descartes famous line:' I think therefore I am'. That took a huge burden off of me, for it was then I knew for certain I was still alive."- George (Yuri) Rodonaia, who died for 3 days and came back to life during autopsy [Ref. 22]

"I was standing up. I opened my eyes to see why I was standing up. I was between two hospital beds in the hospital room. This was surprising; this wasn't right. Why was I alive? I wanted oblivion, escape from all consumingunbearable pain.""Could this be a dream? I kept thinking, 'This has got to be a dream'. But I knew that it wasn't. I was aware that I felt more alert, more aware, and more alive than I had ever felt in my entire life. All my senses were extremely vivid..."I turned and looked at Beverley sitting in the chair next to my bed. She was motionless, staring at the floor... I spoke to her, but she didn't seem to hear. She sat absolutely motionless. I gave up trying to talk to her for the moment because something between us caught my attention."

"There was an object in the bed under the sheet. As I bent over to look at the face of the body in the bed, I was horrified to see the resemblance that it had to my own face. It was impossible that that thing could be me because I was standing over it and looking at it..."

"I turned around to Monsieur Fleurn in the bed behind me. I bent over him and yelled inches from his face, 'Why are you ignoring me?'. He looked right through me as though I were not even there... He stared right through me as if I were invisible."- Howard Storm, ex-atheist, Professor and NDE survivor[Ref. 13]

2) a feeling of peace and painlessness

"I felt so good. I didn't feel any pain""I didn't give it a second thought because I felt so good.""I don't know how long I stayed above my body looking down at it. But suddenly, I was in the most beautiful golden Light, and I stayed there. I felt so loved, calm, peaceful, happy. I can't find words to express what it was like. The Golden Light was all around me, all within me. I was in the Golden Light with no seperation whatsoever. I didn't think of anyone or anything. Being there, I needed not a thing. Such powerful love, and so much love, so much beauty there. I felt love, compassion, understanding, knowledge. There is my true home and here is my earthly home."- Sally from Colarado [Ref. 23]

"I felt no pain. I could see the pain and anguish on my face, lying there in the bed, but I was up above. I wascomfortable and pain free and I was amazed."- Nel, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

" From immense pain I found myself engulfed by peace and tranquility. It was a feeling I had never known before and have not had since. It was like bathing in a glorious calmness. I had no idea what had happened, but even inthis moment of peacefulness I wanted to know where I was."- Dannion Brinkley, NDE survivor [Ref. 24]

"I had traveled to another realm of total and absolute peace. With no physical body my movement was unencumbered. Thought was the avenue for travel. I floated up through blackness where there was no fear, no pain, no misunderstandings, but instead a sense of well-being. I was enveloped by total bliss in an atmosphere of unconditional love and acceptance. The darkness was warm and soft, a blanket of velvety love, stretching endlessly. The freedom of total peace was intensified beyond any ecstatic feeling I've ever felt on Earth. In the distance, a horizon of glorious white, golden light beckoned me forward.As the brilliance increased and the encompassing rays stretched to meet me, I felt that time, as we know it, wasnonexistent. Time and existence were a blending and a melding of the past, present and future into this onemoment. A sense of all-knowing enveloped me. Every part of my being was satisfied with an unconditional love beyond description. All questions were answered. An inner peace without striving or achieving was created and understood."- Laurelynn Martin, Tennisplayer and NDE survivor[Ref. 23]

"I was completely comfortable and no longer in any pain. All of the distress I was in while lying in my hospital bed was gone. I felt like I was bobbing about in a warm bath."- Grace Bubulka-Hatmaker, NDE survivor[Ref. 25]

3) an out-of-body experience

"I rose six to ten feet above and three to five feet in front of my standing body. I could see the whole area, including dust, scraps of paper and wood scraps on the top of the cabinets behind my body. Another student, his back to me, was ripping twelve foot boards of oak on a table saw about fifteen feet in front of my body."- Kenneth, NDE Survivor [Ref. 26]

"Very abruptly, I became aware that I was no longer in my physical body. I was up on the ceiling, looking down at the bed, the IV bottles, the blood running, the beeps of the monitors were going, and the flourescent light overhead was humming incessantly. I looked all around and thought 'Wow! This is really some kind of a trip!' ... I looked around and I saw a beautiful delicate cobweb and there was some cracked plaster over the window. I thought to myself 'My God. For $325 a day, why don't they keep the room clean and fix that plaster?'"- Nel, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

"I realised that I was not in my physical body. I felt no pain or discomfort. I felt totally at peace with myself. I wasstanding behind my coach and one of the other player's father. They were both kneeling over me in the infield,where I was lying on my back."- Neev, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

"I began to look around, to roll over in midair. Below me was my own body, thrown across the bed. My shoes were smoking and the telephone was melted in my hand. I could see Sandy run into the room. She stood over the bed and looked at me with a dazed expression, the kind you might find on the parent of a child found floating facedown in a swimming pool.Tommy showed up in less than ten minutes. He knew something was wrong because he had heard the explosionover the telephone. I watched as Tommy held me and cursed the slowness of the ambulance, which we couldhear approaching in the distance. I hovered above the three of them - Sandy, Tommy, and myself - as the medical technicians loaded me onto the stretcher and wheeled me to the ambulance.From where I hovered, about fifteen feet above everyone, I could see the pouring rain hitting my face and drenching the backs of the ambulance crew. The perspective I had was that of a television camera. Without passion or pain, I watched as the person on the stretcher began to twitch and jump."- Dannion Brinkley, NDE survivor who was struck by lightning [Ref. 24]

"Suddenly I was fully aware and I was standing up, but my body was in the bed. There was this darkness around me. Being out of my body was even more vivid than ordinary experience. It was so vivid that I could see every room in the house, I could see the top of the house, I could see around the house, I could see under the house."- Mellen-Thomas Benedict, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

4) a tunnel experience

"I felt myself moving through a dark void. It was like a tunnel, but it was so dark that it could have been five feet in diameter or thousands of miles. I seemed to be picking up speed and travelling in a perfectly straight line through the void. I felt as if wind was blowing across my face. There was no actual wind though. There were only sensations that would be present if there were wind. I felt as if I were moving at the speed of light through the blackness, and far away in the distance I could see a small pinpoint of light that seemed to be growing larger. I somehow knew that this was my destination. I sped along until it became a huge mass of beautiful and brilliant white light. I stopped short right before reaching it for I felt I was getting too far away from the Earth to find my way back."- Craig, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

"The tunnel I went through was long and very dark. I went through it real fast. There was light at the end. When we saw the light I was very happy... The light was very bright"- Nina, 9 yrs old, talking to Dr Raymond Moody [Ref. 27]

"I became aware of where I was when quite suddenly I found myself standing in the air - suspended as it were inspace - looking at my body on the operating table... We travelled along a dark passage but all the time I could see a light at the end. When we got there it was like going through thick cobwebs into the most marvellous place I have ever seen."- Revd Royston Fraser, England [Ref. 28]

"At that instant, I found myself inside a beautiful white tunnel full of joy and peace, a happiness for which there are no human words that can describe the grandeur of the moment. The climax of the moment was immense. I was happy and joyful, nothing weighed me down. At the end of that tunnel, I saw like a sun, a most beautiful light. I call it white to name a colour because no colour on Earth is comparable with that most beautiful light."- Dr Gloria Polo in "I want to go to Heaven the moment I die"

"A tunnel was forming, opening like the eye of a hurricane and coming toward me. I actually didn't move at all; the tunnel came to me. There was the sound of chimes as the tunnel spiraled toward and then around me. Soon there was nothing to be seen - no crying Sandy, no ambulance attendants trying to jump-start my dead body, no desperate chatter with the hospital over the radio - only a tunnel that engulfed me completely and the intensely beautiful sound of seven chimes ringing in rhythmic succession. I looked ahead into the darkness. There was a light up there, and I began to move toward it as quickly as possible. I was moving without legs at a high rate of speed. Ahead the light became brighter and brighter until it overtook the darkness and left me standing in a paradise of brilliant light."- Dannion Brinkley, NDE survivor

5) encountering "People of Light"

"Somehow an unexpected peace descended upon me. I found myself floating on the ceiling over the bed lookingdown at my unconscious body. I barely had time to realise the glorious strangeness of the situation - that I was me but not in my body - when I was joined by a radiant being bathed in a shimmering white glow. Like myself, this being flew but had no wings. I felt a reverent awe when I turned to him; this was no ordinary angel or spirit, but he had been sent to deliver me. Such love and gentleness emanated from his being that I felt that I was in the presence of the messiah.""Whoever he was, his presence deepened my serenity and awakened a feeling of joy as I recognised my companion. Gently he took my hand and we flew right through the window. I felt no surprise at my ability to do this. In this wondrous presence, everything was as it should be."- Beverley, NDE survivor [Ref.23]

"She was clothed in light, extraordinarily beautiful and loving. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seenand I almost cry when I think about it. She wore a loose fitting white gown, and it gave off a light of its own.... The light around her was flooding into me, and seemed to pour into everything.... The light that shone from the centre of her was gloriously beautiful. This light, combined with her colouring, had an astonishing impact on me. The facial features were overpowered by this inner radiance. I could literally feel her love and care... I had the impression that she knew me very well, and that I was very familiar to her, but she didn't say."- Steve, 45 yrs old, Southern California [Ref. 23]

"When I got out of the tunnel... I never hit the ground. I was gliding... I didn't crawl and I couldn't walk because I was just 9 months old... So I was just gliding and then, all of a sudden, about 50 yards in front of me, there were these white clouded figures... They kinda gave me a warmth and love that I was welcome there"- Mark, speaking at an International Association for Near Death Studies (IANDS) conference in June, 1991, in Seattle

"After a few moments two angels came along and said, 'This way'."- Revd Royston Fraser, England [Ref. 28]

"Then Jesus called out in a musical tone to some of the luminous entities radiating from the great centre. Severalcame and circled around us. The radiance luminating from their luminous being contained exquisite colours of a range and intensity far exceeding anything I had experienced before. They were composed of many colours that I had not seen before. It was like looking at the iridescence in the deep brilliance of a diamond. The words we have are simply not adequate to express their beauty. The eminations from those beings didn't resemble light as we experience it. When you look into a bright light, the intensity hurts your eyes. The luminous beings were far brighter than a powerful search light, yet I could look at them with no sense of discomfort. In fact, their radiance penetrated me; I could feel it inside me and through me, and it made me feel wonderful. It was ecstacy. These were the saints and angels "- Howard Stom, ex-atheist, in the book "My Descent into Death" [Ref. 13]

6) encountering a "Being of Light", a "force" or similar

"This loving, luminous being who embraced me knew me intimately. He knew me better than I knew myself. He was knowledge and wisdom. I knew that he knew everything about me. I was unconditionally loved and accepted...""I experienced love in such intensity that nothing I had ever known before was comparable. His love was greater than all human love put together. His love totally enveloped me, and I realised that he had substance. He was indescribably wonderful: goodness, power, knowledge and love. He was more loving than one can begin to imagine or describe. Jesus did indeed love me.""This person of blinding glory loved me with overwhelming power. After what I had been through, to be completely known, accepted and intensely loved by this beautiful God/man of light surpassed everything I had ever known or could possibly have imagined."- Howard Storm, from his book "My Descent into Death" [Ref. 13]

"It was loving me with overwhelming power. After what I had been through, to be completely known, accepted and intensely loved by this being of light surpassed anything I had known or could have imagined. I began to cry and the tears kept coming and coming.""Then, off in the distance, I saw a vast area of illumination that looked like a galaxy. In the centre, there was anenormously bright concentration. Outside the centre, countless millions of spheres of light were flying about,entering and leaving the great Beingness at the centre."- Howard Storm [Ref. 13]

"NO MATTER WHAT! The light was extremely concerned and loving towards all people. I can remember looking atthe people together and the light asking me to 'love the people'. I wanted to cry, I felt so deeply for them.... Ithought, 'If they could only know how much they're loved, maybe they wouldn't feel so scared or lonely anymore'."- Peggy, automobile accident victim who suffered fatal compound skull fracture, Dallas

"Before my experience, I guess I was like most people struggling with a better self image. But I really experiencedhow precious and how loved I am by God - the light .""...Suddenly, I became aware of a light. It was all around me, it enveloped me, it completely surrounded me. It was an unearthly kind of light. It had colour that is unmatched here on Earth. It was not a beam of sunlight; it was not the glow from a 100 Watt bulb; it was not a roaring fire; it was not a host of candles; it was not a celestial explosion in the midnight sky.""It was warm; it was radiant; it was peaceful; it was accepting; it was forgiving; it was completely nonjudgemental; and it gave me a sense of total security the likes of which I had never known. I loved it. It wasperfection; it was total, unconditional love. It was anything and everything you would wish for on Earth. It was all there in the Light."- Nancy Clark, Ohio [Ref.23]

"I looked to my right and could see a silver form appearing like a silhouette through mist. As it approached I began to feel a deep sense of love that encompassed all of the meanings of the word. It was as though I were seeing alover, mother, and best friend, multiplied a thousand fold. As the Being of Light came closer, these feelings of loveintensified until they became almost too pleasurable to withstand.The Being of Light stood directly in front of me. As I gazed into its essence I could see prisms of color, as though it were composed of thousands of tiny diamonds, each emitting the colors of the rainbow."- Dannion Brinkley, NDE survivor [Ref. 24]

7) being given a "life review"

"This time, my question led me to my life review. It was like watching my life from start to finish on an editing machine stuck in fast forward. The review took me from my conception which felt like the blackness I experienced after my out of body experience, through my childhood, to adolescence, into my teens, and through my near death experience over again. I saw my life. I re-lived my life. I felt everything I ever felt before. When I say 'everything', I mean every cut, pain, emotion and sense associated with that particular time in my life. At the same time, I saw the effects of my life on the people around me.... I felt all that they felt and, through this, I understood the repurcussions of everything I did, be it good or bad. This life review was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And at the same time, the most horrifying thing I was ever to experience."- Neev, student, reporting to Professor Kenneth Ring [Ref. 23]

"When my life went before my eyes, it was not from my earliest memory of 13 months. There was an enormous TV screen in front of me... Way over on the left was my memory at 13 months, and way over on the right was July, 1972, age 38. Everything in between was right there and I could see the whole thing, all at the same instant."- Nel, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

"At that moment, there was a second TV screen, which was just as big as the first. It showed me glimpses ofwhat was to come. It showed me that I would have a prolonged period of physical pain for myself; it showedme that members of my fanily would suffer physical pain; it showed me that my sister in law would die prematurely, and she did. I saw a very rocky road. The presence (who was with her the whole time) said,'Youwill go back and hold your family together; you will be it's cement'.'"- Nel, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

" Mine was not a review but a reliving. For me, it was a total re-living of every thought I had ever thought, everyword I had ever spoken, and every deed I had ever done; plus, the effect of each thought, word and deedon everyone and anyone who had ever come within my environment or sphere of influence, whether I knewthem or not.... No detail was left out, no slip of the tongue or slur was missed. No mistake or accident went unaccounted for. If there is such a thing as hell, as far as I am concerned, this was hell."- An NDE survivor, reported by P.M.H. Attwater in the book "Coming Back"

"When you have a panoramic life review, you literally re-live your life, in 360 degrees panorama. You see everything that’s ever happened. You even see how many leaves were on the tree when you were six yearsold playing in the dirt in the front yard. You literally relive it.Next you watch your life from a second person’s point of view. In this life we’re taught to be sympathetictoward others. But from the second person’s point of view, you’ll feel empathy, not sympathy. After that, youliterally will become every person that you’ve ever encountered. You will feel what it feels like to be that person and you will feel the direct results of your interaction between you and that person.You know the story of the Book of Judgement? Guess what? When you have your panoramic life review, youare the judger. You do the judging."When I finished the life review, I arrived at a point of reflection in which I was able to look back on what I hadjust witnessed and come to a conclusion. I was ashamed. I realized I had led a very selfish life, rarely reaching out to help anyone. Almost never had I smiled as an act of brotherly love or just handed somebody a dollar because he was down and needed a boost. No, my life had been for me and me alone. I hadn't given a damn about my fellow humans.I looked at the Being of Light and felt a deep sense of sorrow and shame. I expected a rebuke, some kind ofcosmic shaking of my soul. I had reviewed my life and what I had seen was a truly worthless person. What didI deserve if not a rebuke?As I gazed at the Being of Light I felt as though he was touching me. From that contact I felt a love and joy thatcould only be compared to the nonjudgmental compassion that a grandfather has for a grandchild."Who you are is the difference that God makes," said the Being. "And that difference is love."- Dannion Brinkley, NDE survivor [Ref. 24]

8) a reluctance to return to life

"Jesus asked me this question “Ian, now that you have seen do you wish to return?” I thought "Return, of course not. Why would I want to go back? Why would I want to return to the misery and hatred? No, I have nothing to return for. I have no wife or kids, no one who really loves me. I want to go on in.” But he didn't move so I looked back one last time to say, “Goodbye cruel world I'm out of here!” As I did, in a clear vision right in front of the tunnel, stood my mother. As I saw her I knew I had just lied; there was one person who loved me – my dear Mum. Not only had she loved me, but also I knew she had prayed for me every day of my life, and she had tried to show me God. In my pride and arrogance I had mocked her beliefs. But she had been right, there was a Godand a heaven and a hell. I realized how selfish it would be to go through to paradise and leave my motherbelieving that I had gone to hell. She would have no idea that I'd had a deathbed prayer and repented of mysins and received Jesus as my Lord and Savior. She would have just got a dead body in a box from Mauritius.So I said, "God, there's only one person really I want to go back for and that is my mum. I want to tell her thatwhat she believes in is true, that there is a living God, that there is a heaven and a hell, that there is a doorand Jesus Christ is that door and that we can only come through him". Then as I looked back again, I saw behind her my father, my brother and sister, my friends, and a multitude of people behind them. God was showing me that there were a lot of other people who also don't know, and would never know unless I was able to share with them.

I asked, “Who are all those other people?” And God said, “If you don't return, many of these people will not get an opportunity to hear about me because many will not put their foot inside a church”. I said, “God I want to go back and tell them all. I've come here once, I don't even really know how I got here, but I can certainly find out. If I've come here once, I know I can come back here again. And I want to make sure I come back” "- Ian McCormack, NDE survivor who was stung by a poisonous jelly fish [Ref. 28,29]

"My grandmother didn't take me back through the tunnel, or even send me back or ask me to go. She just looked up at me. I expected to go with her, but it was communicated to me that she just didn't think she would do that. My uncle said he would do it. He's the one who took me back through the end of the tunnel. Everything was fine. I did want to go. "But then I got to the end of it and saw the thing, my body. I didn't want to get into it ... It looked terrible, like a train wreck. It looked like what it was: dead. I believe it was covered. It scared me and I didn't want to look at it. "It was communicated to me that it was like jumping into a swimming pool. No problem, just jump right into the swimming pool. I didn't want to, but I guess I was late or something because he (the uncle] pushed me. I felt a definite repelling and at the same time a pulling from the body. The body was pulling and the tunnel was pushing ... It was like diving into a pool of ice water ... It hurt!"To me NDE, is the proof that all is well on the other side of life.- Pam Reynolds, NDE survivor [Ref. 10]

"I said, "Dad, I don't want to go - I want to stay with you. Let me stay with you." I was most distressed, I didn't want to go back. He sent me back. He told me that he would be there, he would be there again for me."- Grace, NDE survivor [Ref. 23]

"Most near-death survivors say they don't think there is a God," she says. "They know."- Nancy Evans Bush, president emeritus of the International Association for Near-Death Studies [Ref. 30]

"Those who had undergone NDEs became more altruistic, less materialistic, and more loving."- Dr Raymond Moody, commenting on results of a study of 150 NDE survivors [Ref 31]

"The values you get from a NDE are not the ones you need to function in everyday life,"- Professor Bruce Greyson, NDE researcher and psychiatrist [Ref. 30]

"Unconditional love - NDErs perceive themselves as equally and fully loving of each and all, openly generous, excited about the potential and wonder of each person they see. Confused family members tend to regard this sudden switch in behavior as oddly threatening, as if their loved one had become aloof, un-responsive, even uncaring or unloving.

Lack of boundaries - Familiar codes of conduct can lose relevance or disappear altogether as unlimited avenues ofinterest and inquiry take priority. This new frame of reference can infuse NDErs with such an accepting naturethat they can and do display childlike naivet. With the fading of previous norms and standards, basic cautions anddiscernments can also fade."

Timelessness - Most NDErs begin to "flow" with natural shift of time, rejecting locks and schedules as they exhibit a heightened awareness of the present moment and the importance of "now." They are easily distracted and canappear "spacey" until they readjust to the demands of daily routines.

The psychic - Extrasensory perception and various types of psychic phenomena become normal and ordinary in thelives of NDErs. A person's religious beliefs do not prevent this expansion of faculties or enlargements of perceptualrange. This can frighten the unprepared and be misconstrued as "the devil's work" when it is actually moreakin to "gifts of the spirit."

Reality switches - Hard-driving achievers and materialists can transform into easy-going philosophers; but, by thesame token, those once more relaxed or uncommitted can become energetic "movers and shakers," determined to make a difference in the world. Switches seem to depend more on what is "needed" to round out the individual's growth than on any uniform result.

The soul as self - Most come to recognize themselves as an immortal soul currently resident within material form solessons can be learned while sojourning in the Earth realm. They know they are not their body; it is a "jacket" they wear.

Modes of communications - What was once foreign becomes familiar, what was once familiar becomes foreign.Rationale of any kind tends to lose its logic as NDErs begin to think more abstractly and in grandiose terms. New ways of using language, even whole new vocabularies, emerge."- Dr P.M.H. Attwater, NDE researcher[Ref. 30]

We struggled with the subject of suicide and hell for some time. As bereavement therapists, it is our prime objective to comfort the bereaved and give them hope based on evidence that they will be reunited with their loved ones in Heaven. Yet we cannot hide from the truth or the information we have. There are times when this has, in the past, produced conflict. For example, if the parent or loved one of someone who has committed suicide comes to us for help, we really don't want to tell that person that their loved one has gone to hell because they committed suicide - and yet Near Death Experience accounts from people who have committed suicide are far from pleasant or encouraging.

The answer to this terrible dilemma came following reading "Hope Beyond Hell" by Gerry Beauchemin - in which he tells us that the word eternal has been seriously mistranslated and hence misunderstood.

"the Greek word aion...is mostly translated "eternal", "everlasting" and for "ever" in the King James Version. However, some translations read "age abiding", "age during" or "eon" . Robert Young, author of the highly respected Youngs's Analytical Concordance, in his literal translation of the Bible, always translates it 'age' and never once as 'everlasting' or 'eternal' .

We also found it hard to accept that a loving God would be less compassionate than us. If we (with all our imperfections and flawed human compassion) can think it unfair that someone be cast into quite literally eternal damnation, then surely an all loving God with supreme love and compassion should be more compassionate than us?

Yet, anyone who takes a walk through the drug dens of major cities can surely see that people sometimes choose a hellish existance, for whatever reason. If someone was to create a hellish life for themselves on Earth, then are they ready for Heaven? What would Heaven be like if there was not the spiritual equivalent of a dress code? Not very Heavenly, we would guess.

Instead, we believe that there are states beyond death that are preparation processes for Heaven. NDE survivor, Howard Storm, in the video below, talks of the need for a purging of the negative parts of us before our entry into Heaven.

Fr Rod describes hell as a prison where Jesus comes every day, opens the door and invites us out. When we can accept that invitation, then we can go with him.

Jesus said...

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev._3:19-22)

"We went through fire... but You brought us out to rich fulfillment (Ps. 66:12)"

"Who will have all men saved (1Ti 2:4)"

More Articles...

Donate

We would be very grateful if you would consider donating to the Bereavement Rescue Centre Appeal. We are now at a stage with the Bereavement Rescue Centre project where we must pay for various services relating to the Planning Permission process (Ecological Surveys, Architect drawings and Planning Application fees). We expect to have to raise at least £1200 in order to get through planning before we can apply for a grant to enable the building of the Centre.

Alternatively, please makes cheques payable to 'Bereavement Rescue' and post to the following address: